Officials from the Florida athletic department, including athletic director Scott Stricklin, met with several representatives for Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, according to a report from Swamp247’s Graham Hall.
The meeting took place at an undisclosed location that was not in Oxford, according to the report.
Kiffin is considered to be the primary target of both the Florida and LSU coaching searches. He has fielded questions about his future at Ole Miss for several weeks.
“I love it here [at Ole Miss]. We are in the greatest run that this school has ever had,” Kiffin said earlier this week on the SEC coaches teleconference. “It’s amazing. I’m living in the moment. The players are, too. It’s awesome to be a part of.”
According to Swamp247’s reporting, Kiffin’s ex-wife, Layla, and their son, Knox, toured Gainesville over the weekend. That visit included a meeting with Buchholz High football coach Mark Whittemore. Knox is a 2028 quarterback prospect who currently attends Oxford High. He holds several offers already, including from SMU.
Kiffin coached in the state of Florida from 2017-19, when he led the FAU program. He landed the Ole Miss job in 2020 and has engineered double-digit-win seasons in 4 of the last 5 years.
He is viewed as the proverbial bell of the ball in the coaching market this winter.
Ole Miss concludes its regular season on Nov. 28 against Mississippi State on the road. The Rebels are on a bye this week. They’re still in the running to make the SEC Championship Game and the College Football Playoff, complicating the timeline for a potential Kiffin hire.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Ole Miss had given Kiffin a deadline to decide on his future with the school. Kiffin went on The Pat McAfee Show days later to deny that any such ultimatum had been given.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
